Friday, December 6, 2013

Patience

There is a lot of time in the world. The Japanese care and courtesy seem to breathe it. To believe that there is time is an act of patience, and so much more is possible with patience.

Today I returned home and reached to open my mailbox only to discover that the metal door wouldn't open as it usually does. The hole where one can put a lock had been plugged by a small twig exactly the proper diameter to fit. It had three little buds on it, like a trident.

Who put it there? Perhaps someone concerned about the opening and closing of my box in the wind. Perhaps the mailman who crammed my hot water bottle delivery inside. Someone had the care to care for my mailbox.

It's nice to live in a place that takes care of itself in such a way. It invites like behavior. Taking time to make things better, having the patience to do things properly.